The leaders of the 15 eurozone countries are meeting in Paris today, to discuss emergency measures to deal with the financial crisis. France currently holds the presidency of the European Union, and the French Finance Minister, Christine Lagarde, says the summit will put ‘meat’ on the ‘skeleton’ of the agreement reached by the G7 group of major industrialised nations in Washington on Friday. The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, would not normally be involved in the eurozone meeting, as Britain has not adopted the single currency. But French President Nicolas Sarkozy has invited Mr Brown to be present for part of the meeting, so he can brief everyone about Britain’s attempted rescue plan. This is indicative of just how seriously the situation is being viewed; the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, warned earlier this weekend that rich countries have so far failed to restore confidence, and that the world’s financial system is teetering on the brink of systemic meltdown.
Looking at things more optimistically, one thing that might emerge from this crisis could be a firm commitment in Europe to coordinate relevant policies and strategies more closely in the future. But as far as the global situation is concerned, we probably need another Bretton Woods. The IMF and the World Bank were not designed for the needs of the 21st century, and new big players including China and India need to be brought on board.
Jonathan Fryer 